TORONTO — Nazem Kadri walked out of the Toronto Marlies’ dressing room wearing a T-shirt with “World Famous” written in script letters across the chest. It seemed like a bold fashion choice for a minor-leaguer who has appeared in 51 NHL games since being drafted three years ago.

But it was not exactly a stretch.

While the entire world might not know who Kadri is just yet, the American Hockey League has taken notice. The Toronto Maple Leafs prospect has three goals and eight points in eight playoff games, and was a target for the boobirds in Rochester, N.Y., and Abbotsford, B.C., whenever he touched the puck in the first two rounds.

“It has happened a few times, so I don’t know, I guess I must be doing something right,” Kadri said with a laugh, before the Marlies travelled to play the Oklahoma City Barons in the AHL Western Conference final, which begins Thursday. “I actually kind of like it. It just tells us we’re dominating the game and the fans are obviously frustrated.”

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It is a welcome change for the 21-year-old Kadri, who has been frustrated in his attempts to stick with the Maple Leafs. He has spent the better part of the last two seasons in the minors — 44 games last season, 48 this season — and the waiting game has been a mental grind for the confident Kadri, the seventh overall pick in the 2009 NHL draft. He believes he has the skill to be a top-end player in the top league; the Leafs, so far, have thought differently.

Kadri played 29 games with the Leafs in 2010-11, scoring only three goals and adding nine assists. He came into training camp this year looking to grab a spot on the third line, but ended up with just five goals and two assists in 21 games.

Part of the problem might have been former head coach Ron Wilson, who did not seem to trust the youngster’s high-wire act of handling the puck in the neutral zone. But Kadri, who said the playoffs have taught him the importance of minimizing mistakes, is not blaming anyone for holding him down.

“The one thing I’ve noticed is I’m a bit more mature,” he said. “I’m also growing into my body a little more, I’ve stabilized myself from the bottom of the circles down. That’s a crucial part of the game now, to spin off checks and take the puck to the net, which I’ve been doing a lot in the last few games.

“It’s a big difference between the regular season … just the attention to detail in the playoffs is so big that I didn’t even realize it until it happened.”

This is what Leafs management had been hoping for during this extended playoff run. The Marlies are a young team deep with legitimate prospects. Six players (Kadri, Jake Gardiner, Joe Colborne, Carter Ashton, Stuart Percy and Matt Lashoff) are former first-round draft picks.

According to Dave Poulin, the Leafs vice-president of hockey operations, playing and succeeding in a pressure-filled situation “can take them to a whole new level if they continue to do the right things.”

For Kadri, who had 40 points in 48 games with the Marlies this season, it seems to be having the right effect.

The Leafs project him as a top-line forward and big-game player and he has been succeeding in that role during the playoffs. He helped set up the tying goal and the overtime winner in the the series-clinching win against Abbotsford in the second round.

“People discount how competitive this kid is,” Marlies head coach Dallas Eakins said. “He wants to be on the ice always, he’s got fire in his gut and he wants to win. Those are the main things I want in a player.

“Every time he steps over the boards he’s a real danger to score … he’s made great strides in managing the puck, he’s better in his own zone. He’s come a long way from where he was a year ago.”

Who knows where this will take Kadri. He is still young and might have to spend more time in the minors, a path familiar to Anaheim’s Bobby Ryan and Ottawa’s Jason Spezza. Or he might use this experience and the confidence he is gaining as a springboard to a full-time job in the NHL next season.

Right now, he is just wants to get his name out there and — if he is lucky — hear some more boos.

“It’s about winning a championship here,” he said. “I think everyone on this team has the same determination. That’s what makes this team so great. We’re a pretty resilient group. I think it’s paid off so far.”

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